The Eyes Of a Child
by Axenna
Summary: Cassandra has been watching for years. What does she see?


Spoilers: Singularity, In The Line Of Duty, Rite Of Passage

Copyright 2005 Deneen K. Evans

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

The first time she saw Samantha Carter, Cassandra thought she was an angel, there to save her from the evil one, Nirrti. Samantha was gentle and kind, and never left her no matter what happened. From what little she could recall of those first days on Earth, Cassandra remembered Samantha crying as she took her down into the room deep underground. In the back of her mind, Cassie knew that something was terribly wrong, but she could not give the problem a name. Samantha had stayed with her, hugged her for many minutes before it was safe. She remembered Colonel O'Neill calling for Samantha, the fear evident in his voice as he tried to coax her to come back to the surface. At that time, Cassie didn't know a lot about love, but it was obvious that the Colonel cared for Sam, maybe more than was appropriate.

When she was better, Sam would come to visit her and the home of Dr. Frasier, who had taken Cassandra in until acceptable parents could be found. Personally, Cassie liked Dr. Frasier or Janet as she let Cassie call her, and would rather have stayed with her. Sometimes Colonel O'Neill…Jack… came with her. Cassie liked Jack. He was big and friendly and always made her laugh.

Sometimes, when Jack and Sam would share a laugh, or simply talk, their eyes would soften, and they'd smile at each other in a way that meant something other than what they were saying aloud. It was as though they were touching each other with their words, with their eyes.

When Sam found herself briefly possessed by Jolinar of Malkshur, it was Cassie who found her out first. Her concern was shadowed by Jack's. She'd still been just a little girl then, but by this point she'd begun to really understand what was going on between them. All she saw was that they were both hiding being sad and it was because they were trying to hide feelings.

As she grew up, she continued to notice things, the quick glances, the way one's eyes would soften and light up when the other came near. Yet they continued to stay apart. As Cassie came of age and began to notice boys, she began to make more sense of what she was seeing, as the same problems became a part of her own life.

When she was fifteen, she got sick. They told her that it was something Nirrti had done to her, and for a long while they believed that she would die. It was her mother who forced Nirrti's hand. It was either save Cassie or be shot. Her mother could be scary sometimes. Ol' Doc Frasier, that's what Jack called her.

Her mother died when Cassie was seventeen, and the pain was intense. The entire SGC banded around her in support for a long time, especially Jack and Sam. In a way, Cassie saw them drawing closer to each other as they did to her. Life eventually resumed its normal path again, with Sam as her legal guardian, but Cassie chose to live alone at that point.

She sensed something change in Jack and Sam's professional relationship about a year after her mother died. They became closer, and Cassie began to wonder if they had finally come clean to each other, and gotten together, as they should have many years ago. The glances had given way to actual physical contact, small touches, and their faces glowed when they were together and apart. It was confirmed yet another year later when they announced their engagement. She was happy. Seeing them as in love as they were warmed her. She only wished her mother had lived to see it. Somewhere, though, Cassie knew her mother was watching…

…and smiling.

Her mother was gone. She'd wanted to see them together, Cassie knew that. It was horribly ironic that she'd missed it. Cassandra had lived more than half her life waiting for Jack and Sam to get with the program, and they finally had.

They were together.

Finally.

The End.


End file.
